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Wednesday, April 23, 2014

Columbia, Mo., paper uses OpenBlock program to connect readers to community happenings

OpenBlock, created in 2009, is a web application that allows users to browse and search their local areas for maps and up-to-the-minute news, including 911 calls, crime reports, restaurant inspections, police and fire department activities, coupons, business and restaurant reviews, local news, sports and photos, open houses, and notifications of new business licenses and local events.

In the digital age the tool is a handy one for media outlets, especially newspapers, allowing them to constantly update the site, while letting users post their own information and photos. And for readers always looking for the latest information, the sites are a perfect place to find out what's happening in your neighborhood.

One paper that has added OpenBlock to their resume is the Columbia Daily Tribune. The newspaper in the town that is home to the University of Missouri recently began an online section called Neighborhoods, which features a wide variety of information that "offers a street-level view of things going on around you," the paper tells its readers.

The site, which has both simple and detailed navigation instructions, allows users to "browse all types of information across the whole city or filter down to just the neighborhood and type of report that interests you the most," the paper says. "Best of all, you can zero in on the area you care most about—whether that's the block where you live, the area around your kids' school or just the place you happen to be using your mobile phone." To visit the site, click here.

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